For Those Who Remain
by JenniLouWho
Summary: Sakura and Kakashi. Teammate, partners, and friends. For three years all they knew was each other and the missions they took, but when Sakura is almost fatally injured how will Kakashi deal with the prospect of losing someone else? Will he stay as her partner or will he back off in an attempt to save himself future heartbreak. They say time heals all, but will it be enough for him?
1. Chapter 1

Hi! Welcome!

Okay, now that that's over, let's get down to business.

(To defeat the huns!)

This is a Sakura/Kakashi fanfic. The story itself is divided into three arcs.

This arc will focus on Kakashi and Sakura's relationship and their life in general.

Here's some background.

Kakashi is 33 and Sakura is 20. This story takes place four years after the invasion of Pein.

Kakashi and Sakura are now ANBU teammates.

Yes, there is a 13 year age gap. Don't like it, don't read.

But for those supporters of Kaka/Saku then I hope you enjoy!

Btw, I don't own anything, save for my plot.

..00..

Practically flying over the tree branches, Kakashi hauled his pink haired teammate to the safety their village offered.

They were close, he knew, maybe fifteen more minutes before they would be at the gates. He was hoping his teammate didn't wake before then.

A disoriented Sakura wasn't something he wanted to deal with it mid air.

Letting his mind drift to the mission that they currently were on he thought about how close they both had come to death.

Again.

It wasn't the first time the two person ANBU team and been in some close calls, but none shook him up quite like this one. Usually it was him that was the injured one, and Sakura the one to patch him up. He preferred it that way. That was why he usually was the one to metaphorically dive in head first – he knew she could heal him, whereas he only knew basic first aid.

But this time the man that they were targeting had a hidden poisoned kunai that neither one of them knew of.

And Sakura was the one that found out the hard way.

Shaking his head to clear his mind of the unwanted memory, he let himself concentrate on getting back to Konoha has quickly as he could. The sooner he got Sakura to Tsunade the better.

She had done a pretty good job of cleansing her own body of the poison, but before she could finish she had passed out. Most likely due to the open wound that the kunai had caused.

Within the next few minutes the gates that lead into the village came into his view.

_Thank Kami._

Thankfully the two chunin that were on guard duty at the time recognized their uniforms and quickly stood aside and let him pass.

He didn't stop running until he arrived at the hospital.

It was then, and only then, that he allowed the medic on duty to remove Sakura from his arms and carry her away.

It was only then that sank to the ground by a wall and held his head in his hands.

He has almost lost her today. Almost lost the one person he trusted completely.

He wasn't sure how to deal with that knowledge.

Sighing, he raised his head out of his hands and looked around. It seemed everyone had vanished as soon as he burst through the doors.

Not that it was surprising. Sakura worked at the hospital during her free time away from missions so everyone recognized her pink hair from above her mask.

Thinking about it, he had yet to remove his.

Gently reaching behind his head he untied the strap that held the mask in place and slid it off his face.

Looking at the porcelain item in his hands he let his mind wonder.

ANBU. The best of the best. Elite of the elite.

He had joined back up with the group four years ago, going on solo missions until Sakura joined the group as well one year later.

She had been his only teammate since then.

Not that it was shocking. She was the only one he trusted to have his back, only one who understood the reason he went back to the organization. She was the only one who pushed herself like he did, going on mission after mission.

And this was the first time in three years that she had ended up being carried back to their village unconscious. He wasn't completely sure how to feel about it.

He had to believe she would be okay.

She **had **to be okay.

..00..

She hurt.

Hurt more than she ever remembered hurting.

Opening her eyes slowly she blinked a couple of times to clear her vision.

So she was in a hospital room. She must have passed out before she could finish healing herself.

Sighing, she turned her head on her pillow and looked out the window to her left.

_Nighttime. I must have been out for hours then._

Closing her eyes once again she let her mind remember what had happened that morning.

Poisoned kunai. The guy they were after got in a lucky shot. That explains why her side hurt like hell.

Sighing, she opened her eyes once more. It was then she noticed a rather tall man asleep in the chair on her right.

He still had on the tight, black ANBU uniform, meaning that he hadn't left the hospital.

Laughing slightly to herself, she realized that his silver hair was even more unruly than normal.

She herself had been changed into a standard hospital gown. Reaching up her hand she felt her hair.

_Yep, just as unruly as Kakashi's._

Sighing once again, she wished she had a brush. If there was one thing she couldn't stand, it was messy tangled hair.

Hearing the door open, Sakura put her hand back down by her side and looked to see who was coming into the room.

"Well, looks like you're finally up" came the voice of her former teacher and Hokage, Tsunade.

"Hai. How long was I out for?"

"Kakashi brought you in a little after ten this morning, so about thirteen hours." Glancing at the sleeping man in the chair, Tsunade added, "He hasn't left since he brought you in. I have to say, I've never seen the man look so worried before."

Feeling a blush creep up on her face, she responded, "I'm sure he's had fun sleeping in a chair."

Laughing slightly, the older woman agreed. "Guess it's time to wake him. I have something I need to tell you both anyways."

Walking over to the chair, she kicked it.

Kakashi sat up as if his life depended on it.

Tsunade burst out laughing. Kakashi didn't seem nearly as pleased.

Sakura chuckled before asking, "Shishou, what was it that you needed to tell us?"

"Oh, yes, that." She glanced at Sakura, before settling her gaze on Kakashi.

"You both are hereby placed on mandatory vacation. No, no buts Kakashi. And Sakura, don't look at me like that. You've both been doing mission after mission since Sakura became ANBU. That's a long time to go without a break. It'll do you both some good to have some down time. No, don't even start Kakashi; I want you both to take some time to yourselves. Catch up with some old friends. Hell, Kakashi, even read those perverted books you seem to like so well. Yes, Sakura, I am telling him that. I don't even want to see you at the ANBU headquarters for two months."

"Two months! But-" Sakura was once again cut off.

"Yes, two months. We'll see if you both are ready to be sent on more missions after that. I'm doing this for your well being. I don't want two of my best ninja to be killed because they are overworked."

Turning around and heading for the door, she paused before she opened it, her hand on the handle.

"Please, both of you, rest. Sakura, you can go home tonight if you wish. All I ask is that Kakashi stay with you just in case you need help." With that, she opened the door and walked out of the room.

..00..

It was after midnight before the duo made it to Sakura's apartment. It was a cool fall night and it felt good to Kakashi's overheated skin. They had stopped by his apartment so he could get clothes to sleep in and to change into the next day. Sakura had, of course, tried to talk him out of staying with her. Saying she was fine and that he should have to stay away from his own bed. But of course he didn't listen to any of it. He had almost lost her that morning, and he wasn't in any hurry to part from her. In fact, Tsunade's order had given him a perfect excuse to stay close to Sakura.

So, Sakura had finally realized he wasn't listening to her and gave up trying to convince him.

He had gone in the bathroom to change while Sakura got ready for bed in her room.

Slowly peeling off the skin tight clothing he breathed a sigh of relief. Nothing felt better than taking off that uniform after a long day and replacing it with loose clothing. And his face, ah, it felt so good to finally be mask less.

Splashing some water on his face and running his hands through his hair in an attempt to tame it, he then picked up his discarded clothing and walked out of the bathroom and to the living room.

Sakura was already in the room and was laying some bedding down over her couch and she glanced up at him when he entered the room.

"I really hate the idea of you taking the couch. Please, just take the bed. I'm much smaller than you." She pleaded.

Shaking his head, he answered, "No. You're injured. And besides, your couch is very comfy."

And it was true. She had one of those huge fluffy couches that begged to be sat on.

Sighing, she finished his makeshift bed. "Well, then, have a good night. I guess I'll try and get some sleep, though for some reason I'm wide awake now."

Smiling, he told her, "And as soon as your head hits your pillow you'll be out light a light. You always do."

Laughing at herself, she nodded. "Yeah, you're right."

Motioning to her room, Kakashi made a shew-ing sound. "Go, go. I need my beauty sleep."

At the Sakura promptly burst out in a fit of laughter.

"Beauty sleep my ass. You know if you were to walk around the village without that mask of yours half of the female population would faint just like Hinata use to do whenever she was around Naruto."

Of course, she was exaggerating a little bit. But he was still extremely handsome.

"Go to sleep Sakura, before you make my ego even bigger than you already clam it to be"

Laughing, she turned around and made her way out of the living room, but she paused before she left the room entirely.

"Thank you Kakashi, for saving me today."

Smiling a genuine smile, he replied "You know I'll always save you."

Smiling back, she then left the room for her own.

_Just please, Sakura, don't make me have to save it again._

..00..

Just as Kakashi predicted, Sakura found sleep easily. When he went to check on her three hours later she was sleeping peacefully. He, of course, had lain awake until he got up to check on her.

If he was honest, nearly losing her had caused him to seriously think about his life.

She was truly the most important person in his life. Not that he ever thought she would be as important to him as she was. Sure, he cared for her when he taught her. Cared for her when she was training under Tsunade. But it wasn't until Naruto left the village to find ways to become stronger and Sakura joined ANBU that she became the person she was to him today.

He had spent the last three years spending nearly every day with her; training, going on missions, and just spending time together.

Guess that's what happens when your life completely revolves around missions.

Maybe Tsunade was right. Maybe they did need to slow down.

Snorting to himself, he realized even if he didn't want to that it didn't matter.

Maybe he would see if Asuma was home. They could go out for sake or something. Have some "male bonding time".

Or more like hear the other man to talk about his daughter and wife.

Rolling over Kakashi realized the grim truth. He was a thirty-three year old man who was unmarried, unattached, and childless. Everyone else in his age rang has began to start families and slow down.

And here he was, going at it like he was still in his early twenties.

Sleep. He needed sleep.

He would think of his crazy life in the morning. It wasn't like he didn't have time.

..00..

So what do you think?

I have this arc semi mapped out and the ending is already written. I'm going to try to update at least once a week, hopefully more if I have time.

Other characters will be added, though some may not make an appearance until the second arc

3


	2. Chapter 2

Yay! Chapter two is done!

Thanks to harvestangel99 and orochimaru's cherry blossom for reviewing! Makes my day to read reviews to my story 3

Just to let everyone know that after this there will be a six year time skip.

Yes, six years.

I'll explain more at the end. Don't want to ruin anything for you guys! ;)

Btw, I don't own anything except for my plot.

Enjoy!

Kakashi realized it was nearly morning and he had yet to fall asleep.

He normally wasn't one to lay awake all night, sleep eluding him. But here he was, staring at the ceiling and trying to will his mind to shut off so he could finally get some sleep.

He never had this much trouble.

Normally he would read a few chapters in his book and by then he would be so tired he had been known to fall asleep in the middle of a paragraph.

And he had finished his few chapters an hour and a half ago.

Raking his left hand through his hair in annoyance, he rolled over onto his stomach and buried his head in his pillow.

After the previous mission he should have fallen asleep as soon as his head hit his pillow, but instead his mind kept replying what had happened over and over.

He had almost lost her.

The fear with that knowledge consumed him, scared him. She was his closest friend. They had spent the last three years on mission after mission together.

He hadn't let himself get this close to someone since the loss of his first genin team. Since Rin.

He knew he had to back off. He couldn't continue to be this close to someone who could one day die on him.

Rolling over onto his back, he tried to figure out how he could keep himself from getting hurt again.

It was then that Kakashi sat up and slowly got off the couch. He tried to be as quite as possible as he walked down the hall into Sakura's bedroom.

She appeared to be fine.

Just as quietly he walked back into the living room and gathered his stuff and placed it into his bag he had brought from his apartment.

Once he knew he had everything, he opened her front door and walked out into the early morning.

He couldn't let himself get hurt again.

..00..

When consciousness finally returned to Sakura she realized she had slept later than she had in a very long time.

Not that it surprised her though.

Sitting up in her bed and stretching, Sakura let the details of the previous day enter her mind.

She had come close to dying. It was the first time she had ever had such a close call and she wasn't quite sure how she felt about it.

Yes, sure, she was a shinobi and with that came the possibility of death. It just wasn't ever real to her until yesterday.

Sighing she got out of bed and made her way to the bathroom.

Well, that was her original destination, until she glanced into her living room and realized that Kakashi was gone.

_That's strange; I would have thought that he would have woken me up to tell me that he was leaving._

Trying to ignore the small amount of worry that had entered into her mind, she made her way back to the bathroom to take a shower.

She felt the need to pay Tsunade a visit.

..00..

After Sakura had gotten out of the shower and dressed in her normal outfit of tight black shorts and red dress that hit her at mid thigh and had slight up to her hips she made her way out of her apartment and to the Hokage Tower.

She thankfully didn't pass too many people on the way; she was too wrapped up analyzing why she was worried to stop and talk to anyone.

As she finally arrived she greeted the woman at the reception desk and walk on through seeing as how everyone that worked there knew who she was. Tsunade's office was on the fifth floor and was the only office on that floor. So when she made it up the steps she went and knocked on the only door in the hallway.

It only took a few seconds before she heard Tsunade yell for whoever was at the door to come it.

Tsunade wasn't known for being very professional when she was stuck in her office all day.

So Sakura opened the door and was greeted with the familiar sight of her mentor sitting at her desk; a desk that was currently covered in paperwork.

"Ah, Sakura, what brings you in? I thought I told you to take the next two months off?" Tsunade questioned when she realized who was walking into her office.

"Aye, I knew you didn't really mean it. At most you'd made us take a week off" Sakura teased.

"Maybe not this time. Sakura, you have no idea how close you came to dying yesterday."

"Shishou, you know as well as I do that situations like that are normal for shinobi, especially those of ANBU."

"Yes, but most of those aren't people who I consider a daughter. You are. I don't like having to patch you back together."

Sakura took a moment to let those words sink in before replying.

"Shishou, thank you. But I am not different than any other ninja, we all have a job to do."  
"Be that as it may, but you are still taking time off. While you may be right in me not making you take two months off, I still want you to take at least another week or two off. After that time you'll have a new assignment."

Confusion washed over Sakura and she knew Tsunade could tell by what she said next.

"Kakashi came to me this morning and requested to be put back on solo missions."

"What, why? Why would he do that?! We've been a team for the past three years!" Sakura felt betrayal flow through her veins.

Tsunade got up from behind her desk and walked over to the young pink hair woman who was about to fall in the floor.

"Sakura, sit down. You're still weak from yesterday."

Walking over to the nearby chair Sakura sat down and then once again resumed her questions.

"Please, Shishou, what did he say? Why does he no longer want to work with me?"

Tsunade looked at Sakura a long time before answering.

"Sakura, I don't believe it has anything to do with you. Kakashi, well, he doesn't get close to people. I think he needs to be on his own again."

Sakura nodded once, before getting up.

"Thank you for telling me. Do you know who my next partner or team will be?"

Nodding Tsunade walked over to her desk and pulled a file from out of the piles and piles of paperwork.

"Mitarashi Anko will be your new partner for the most part and occasionally will join other teams if the situation calls for it. You will meet her at the ANBU headquarters in a week's time. Get to know each other and then within the week that follows I'll send you both on your first mission."

Looking at Sakura once again, Tsunade could help but to add, "Please, don't over think why Kakashi asked for solo missions. Trust me when I say it has absolutely nothing to do with you."

Nodding, Sakura walked towards the door and quickly walked out.

She never once broke down and the way back to her apartment. But once the door shut she sank down to the floor and buried her face in her hands.

She was too weak to keep Kakashi as a partner.

..00..

Tsunade watched as the pink hair young woman made her way out of her office. She knew she was on her way home and when she arrived there she would lose whatever strength she had.

She was angry.

Kakashi should have known what this would do to Sakura. Everyone she cared about had left her to get stronger, leaving her to believer that she wasn't strong enough to keep them by her side.

And now here Kakashi goes, doing the same thing.

Sighing she began to rub her temples, feeling a headache coming on.

If only Sakura knew the real reason that Kakashi had done this.

If only she knew.

..00..

0.o

So yeah, Kakashi asked to be removed from doing missions with Sakura!

Wonder why.

*Evil laughs because I know*

Why do y'all think he did? I know I alluded to it during this chapter at the beginning, but there is actually a lot more to the story.

Any who, the six year time skip. The reason for this is I want to give Sakura time to grow into her own and I want her a little older for the upcoming romance. And I want Kakashi to do some growing of his own too.

I wanted to start here thought because this whole thing with them being teammates until Kakashi asked to do solo missions had to be done. It'll set the whole mood for the next chapters.

So in chapter 3 Sakura will now be 26 and Kakashi will be 39.

Wonder what they'll be like in six years….

Until next time! 3


	3. Chapter 3

I wasn't going to update again so soon, but I can't sleep and I decided to use my extra time wisely!

Anyways, this is just a short chapter with not much going on, but it's needed. I think it's pretty cute anyways ;)

Things will heat up in the next chapter.

Btw, I own nothing except for my plot.

Happy reading!

..00..

For six years Sakura put all she had into being the best ninja she could be. She worked just as hard as she had with Kakashi, if not more.

She was surprised how well Anko and herself got along and worked together. She could even call them friends, rather than just teammates.

On her days off she would spend her time researching new medical techniques and working in the hospital.

Whenever Kakashi came in she avoided his room like the plague.

Not that it was a surprise; she hadn't spoken to him since she told him goodnight the night before he requested to be separated from her as a teammate and therefore withdrawing his friendship as well.

It still hurt her that he did what he did. Left the way he did. In all honestly it hurt more than Sasuke leaving for power or Naruto leaving to train.

He left _her._

Ever since then she had been hell bent on being as strong as she could be. Training harder than she ever had before, working harder than ever before.

Her strength wasn't all that had improved.

Over the years she blossomed into a beautiful woman. She had let her short pink hair grow out and it now fell to the small of her back. She had traded in her normal wardrobe on black shorts and red dress for more for a more form fitting outfit of long black, tight pants, mesh shirt, and long sleeved red vest.

She turned more heads than ever before; not that she really had time to date.

She had an on and off again relationship with the hyuga prodigy, Neji, after they worked together on a mission three years ago.

It was more physical than anything, but then again neither of them really had time to put forth the effort it would take to make a real relationship blossom.

Of course, that ended after it had run its course.

This is why she found herself being drug to the local bar by one already slightly tipsy Anko.

She felt that Sakura needed a new man in her life. Sakura disagreed. But telling that to Anko was like telling it to a brick wall.

Not to mention that she felt the need to force Sakura into a short black tube dress with no sleeves.

And heels. She made her wear heels.

Apparently a big group of Jounin and ANBU were meeting up to celebrate Asuma and Kurenai finally deciding to get married. It's not like they already had a 10 year old daughter or anything.

So here she sat, listening to Kurenai tell everyone how Asuma finally proposed and how she wanted a huge wedding, when a movement by the door caught her attention.

_Shit._

Kakashi just walked in and appeared to be headed to the table that the group she was in sat.

She was going to need more alcohol than she already had to get through this night.

..00..

In the six years since Kakashi once again began doing solo ANBU mission his life became a blur of missions, trips to the hospital after collapsing at the gates to Konoha, bar trips with Asuma, alcohol, and sleazy women.

He avoided Sakura like the plague.

That's not to say that he didn't still think about her. He did every day.

He knew that she was teammates with Anko, still ANBU, and that she had grown into one of the most beautiful women he had ever seen.

He was just happy she was still alive.

According to Asuma, Kakashi need a life. And a woman. He disagreed.

But that's why he found himself making his way to the local bar to celebrate Asuma and Kurenai finally getting engaged. Asuma told him if he didn't show up he was burning all his Icha Icha books.

Kakashi felt he went a little too far.

But really, what could one night with old friends hurt? And it was at a bar, which meant alcohol.

Don't get him wrong, he wasn't an alcoholic or anything, but he did enjoy his Sake.

But as he opened the door to the inside of the bar and began making his way to the table all his friends sat at the sight of a woman in a short black dress and bright, long pink hair made his blood run cold.

Sakura was here.

He was going to have to face her after six years.

He needed alcohol to get through this night.

..00..

So yeah, this is just a little short filler chapter to fill everyone in on what's been happening in Sakura and Kakashi's lives for the past six years.

Next chapter will pick up where this one left off and have plenty of Sakura/Kakashi interaction ;)

Things tend to happen when alcohol is involved.

Till next time!

3


	4. Chapter 4

I wanted to write this yesterday, but I had no motivation and was unsure how to go about writing this chapter.

I actually didn't know how tonight either, but All Time Low gave me inspiration =)

So, good news is I have this story mapped out until chapter 12 or so, and that's not all I plan on writing for the first arc. I'd like for each on to have around 15-20 chapters for a grand total of 45-60 chapters.

Thanks to all those who have reviewed! It means the world to me and gives me the get up and go to get these chapters out as quick as I can.

*Hint hint* ;)

Warning, there's some nasty language at the beginning, but I figured you mix alcohol and ninja together words may fly. Especially when in the circumstance I put them in.

Anywho, hope you enjoy the chapter and let me know what you think!

Btw, I don't own anything except my plot!

Enjoy!

3

..00..

He couldn't take any more.

He had watched her tip back drink after drink, becoming more and more gone ever since he arrived at the bar an hour ago.

Sure, he had a couple himself, but he was nowhere near as gone as she was.

And now she was currently sitting in the lap of some man he'd only ever seen in passing.

_A chunin _he thought with disgust. The man had to be a few years Sakura's senior and was far below her rank.

"Are you listening to a word I've said?" asked the man to his right.

"Sorry, but there's something I need to do" he muttered and before he could talk himself out of it pushed himself up out of his seat and made his way to where Sakura currently was.

Of course, he could think of a million reasons this was a bad idea. The biggest one being that he hadn't spoken to her in six year and she probably would put him in the hospital for interfering.

But he'd had just enough alcohol to not care.

Which brought him here, hauling one very pissed off Sakura off one nameless shinobi (a chunin!) and out the nearest exit.

Thank Kami his reflexes were as good as they were and thank Sakura was drunk, because otherwise he'd be lying on the street bleeding by now.

"What the hell were you thinking you damn son of a bitch!" Sakura screamed while swinging at him.

"Saving you ass is what I was thinking! Do you even know that guy? He had pansy written all over him!" He yelled back, avoiding her fists at all cost.

"Mother fucke- umf!" Sakura screamed, only to be cut off by Kakashi somehow managing to grab both of her hands and pulling them behind her back.

"You were making a damn fool of yourself! Damnit! Calm down!" Kakashi said, trying to be calm and stop her struggling.

"Why would you care? Huh? It's not like you gave a damn about me six years ago, why start now?" She asked, somehow sounding more sober than she had since he walked in.

"Damnit Sakura. That's not true and you know it." He replied, finally letting her hands go.

He was surprised to see tears in her eyes as she turned around and faced him.

"And why wouldn't I think it's true? You leave in the middle of the night and request to be removed from being a team with me. You didn't even tell me yourself, Shishou had to tell me."

Raising a hand to brush back her hair off her face that had fallen earlier, Sakura continued.

"Then you avoid me for six years. Six damn years Kakashi. And now here you are, trying to act like nothing ever happened. Like you have the right to try and 'save' me"

Kakashi had to admit, she made him feel like dirt. Worse than dirt, actually.

"Sakura, please, you don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh really? I don't, do I? Then please, fill me in"

Sighing to himself, he opened his mouth to tell her he couldn't, that she wouldn't understand, when he heard her laugh.

"You can't, can you? Because I understand everything perfectly, and you have nothing to say."

It was then that he knew he had to do something.

"Sakura, please, you need to understand that there are things that you, well, won't understand."

"Why don't you try me? I think I deserve it after six years."

And there it was. He could walk away and lose her completely; forever. Or he could let her in. Maybe not all the way, but maybe just a little. Enough to get her to understand why he did what he did. Maybe then they could be friends.

Did he want that?

Looking at her face the answer made itself clear.

..00..

Sakura was unsure how exactly she ended up at Kakashi's apartment, sitting on his couch as he changed.

Of course, she knew _how, _more she just didn't know _why._

One minute she had been heavily flirting with a chunin she'd seen around and the next she was being hauled outside by the very last person she ever thought she be near again.

Pissed was an understatement in how she felt.

She guessed the thought of finally knowing why Kakashi did what he did all those years ago was more tempting than wanted it to be.

It wasn't like she cared anymore.

Really, she didn't.

Sighing she knew that it was a lie. She did care.

How could she not?

So here she was, waiting to Kakashi to reappear so she could figure out if he really was going to tell her or of he was going to try and talk circles and try to convince her he was telling her what she wanted to hear.

She figured it would be the latter.

_It's not like he's really going to tell me _she thought, but was abruptly pulled back to reality by Kakashi's appearance in the doorway to his living room.

"So are you going to tell me now?" she questioned with a raised eyebrow.

..00..

Kakashi had tried to kill as much time as he could change his clothes. He just knew this was going to end badly. She wasn't going to understand and then she would leave and he would have opened himself up to her for nothing.

Why he had suggested that they go to his apartment to talk was beyond him. Maybe he thought she would decline. Maybe he'd been more affected by the alcohol than he thought.

Maybe, somewhere deep within him, he _wanted _her to know.

Maybe he was tired of being alone.

Sure, he had friends. Asuma was probably more like a brother to him than anything else, but he still didn't let the man in. He still kept his distance, but that's how he had always been.

But he had to face it, he either opened up to Sakura and let her in, or he shut her out and lost her forever.

He was actually surprised he hadn't already, but then again Sakura had always been too good and forgiving for her own good.

Sitting on his bed he pinched the bridge of his nose and wondered how he got himself into this.

He was almost forty years old and he was worried what some twenty six year old thought. Worried if he had gone too far and pushed her away forever.

What the hell was wrong with him?

Somewhere in the depths of his mind, he acknowledged that Sakura had always been important to him. Or, she had been since he let her in when they became teammates in ANBU.

And the last person who had been that important to him died.

Deep down, Kakashi knew he was scared to lose someone else.

But damn, if he didn't get his butt into gear and at least tried to make her understand, he would lose her any way.

With new resolve, Kakashi pushed himself off his bed and made his way to the living room.

..00..

Sakura waited for him to answer her. Waited for him to tell her this was a mistake and to tell her she needed to leave.

That was why when he moved to sit down beside her she was more than shocked.

She noticed that he had changed into a pair of loose fitting cotton pants and a sleeveless shirt, complete with attached mask.

It hurt to think that once he had been comfortable enough around her to forgo the mask.

"Well?" she questioned, trying desperately to get her mind to stop its train of thought.

"Sakura, you have to understand that I never meant to hurt you. I acted out of fear and because of that I made it seem like I didn't want to be around you. You have to believe me when I say that was never the case." Kakashi started, clearly having trouble speaking about it.

"If that wasn't the reason, what was? You've had six years to explain this to me, but you never have. It wasn't so much the action of not wanting to be teammates that hurt; it was the silence that followed. You can't expect me to think of anything but the worst." Sakura told him, deciding now was the time to be as honest as she wanted to be.

The last thing she expected was to see Kakashi bury his head in his hands, then run said hands through his hair before telling her in a haunted tone, "Everyone that I ever got close to died. It hit me hard that I was close to you and that you could die. In order to save myself hurt, I needed to get away from you. I swear I only intended to stay away for a week, maybe too. Just enough to figure everything out. But then I was called in for a mission, then another, and another. Before I knew it a year had gone by and I no longer knew what to say to you."

"Maybe, oh, I don't know, sorry? Sorry I've been such a jackass to you. Sorry I left without telling you. Sorry I decided to never speak to you again."

Jumping up off the couch, Sakura walked over to the nearest wall, needing to get away from him. Needing to distance herself.

"Sorry would have been a damn good start." She said, her voice low and tense.

..00..

Kakashi didn't know how the conversation would go, but having Sakura jump up from the couch and walk away wasn't it. Nor was her anger, but maybe he should have expected it.

That didn't stop him from feeling his own anger rise while she went on her tirade of how he should have started with "sorry".

He found that he couldn't sit any longer. Instead, he found himself walking over to where Sakura stood; only stopping when he was a mere inch away from her.

"You right. Is that what you wanted to hear? Well, guess what, I'm _sorry._ Sorry for being such a _jackass _to you. Sorry for making you think I didn't want to be near you. I'm fucking sorry!" He ranted.

Stepping ever close to her, he backed her into the wall.

"How about more? How about I tell you that at that point, you where the most important person in my life." He then put his hands on either side of her face, blocking her in.

"How about I tell you that I hadn't been that close to anyone since Rin. How about I tell you that if you had been older, I would have kissed you senseless as soon as I knew you were okay after you almost died.

He could now see how Sakura had gone still. It was then that he realized how close they were to each other.

Her breasts were pushed against his chest and he had one knee between her legs. Their position brought back all the memories he had of wanting her. Made him remember the sleepless night agonize over how he was lusting after his former student; girl thirteen years his junior.

That's when the thought popped up in his mind about how she was no longer a girl.

She was very much a woman.

When Sakura's hand rose up to rest on his waist he was gone for.

Taking his left hand off the wall he quickly pulled his mask down, closed the gap between them, and pressed his lips against hers.

The hands that were on his waist clenched the material of his shirt before moving to slide up his chest and come to rest on his neck.

Hot.

He felt hot.

Moving his lips against hers he pressed himself more fully against her.

He needed more.

He bit her lower lip and swept his tongue along her bottom lip begging for her to open her mouth and let him in and when she did his tongue battled with hers.

Deciding that she was too short to kiss comfortably, he moved his hands to her waist and lifted her up.

Catching on she promptly wrapped her legs around him, the action bring her extremely close to a very _hard _part of him.

Unable to help himself he pushed his hips into hers, grinding himself against her. He caught her strangled gasp in his mouth.

Feeling one of her arms wrap around his neck he tensed when she dragged she free hand down his back, nails scratching him through his thin shirt.

Too many clothes separated them. They needed to go.

As soon as he thought that he abruptly pulled back, staring at Sakura.

He eyes were glazed over, her lips red from his kisses.

Resting his forehead against hers, he took a deep breath and closed his eyes.

"Kakashi? What are we doing?" came the husky question.

All he could do was shake his head, lower her to the ground, and rest his head against her shoulder.

"I don't know." Came the soft reply from the silver haired man.

..00..

Ah, I'm so glad to get this chapter out! What do y'all think? I'm not too good on the whole kissing scene thing, but I did the best I could.

Once, again, thanks to all those who have followed, favorited, and reviewed this story!

3's to all you!

Until next time!


	5. Chapter 5

Yay! Chapter 5 is finally here!

I had planned to write it Friday night and upload it Saturday afternoon, but those plans fell through due to sleep deprivation and then a concert Saturday.

But anyways, here it is!

Btw, I own nothing save for the plot.

Enjoy!

..00..

Kakashi was an idiot.

A grade A, dumber than dirt idiot. Well, at least he thought so. Why else would he have kissed Sakura?

Groaning he shoved the pillow that was under his head and placed it over top of his face in irritation. If he could go back a few hours and rethink the whole going to the bar decision he would.

At least, that's what he told himself.

Much to his displeasure he kept thinking about how she looked, with lust causing her eyes to glaze over. Lust for _him_.

With a muttered curse he turned over so he now lay on his stomach with the pillow now resting on the back of his head.

He was never going to get any sleep tonight if he kept thinking the way he was.

He had tired the old argument that she was a kid and that he was too old for her. Of course, in some ways he _was _too old for her, but she was far from a kid.

So that argument was useless.

Then he tried to tell himself that he didn't mean to kiss her, that it just happened. Now, that was true to a point, but if he was completely honest with himself he would have to acknowledge that he had wanted to kiss her since they began working in ANBU together. He wasn't sure when it happened, but at some point in those three years he had stopped looking at her like she was still a twelve year old genin and began to look at her as a fellow comrade. A _friend _even.

Maybe that was when everything changed.

But he had held himself back, telling himself that she was still practically a child, only a year out of her teens. She hadn't had the life experience he'd had, or the relationship experience. He forced himself to never cross that line. He had done a good job.

Until she almost died.

It had brought back painful memories that he had long tired to forget. He had shoved them so far back into his mind that he no longer thought about them. He had managed to keep them locked up for thirteen years. Thirteen long, lonely years.

Then _she_ brought them back. That's when he knew he had to get away from her; being that close to someone only led to heartbreak.

That was why he needed to stay away from her _now._ He couldn't let himself get back into that place again. He refused to go back to that place. Refused to be the person it made him be.

He would be strong. He would live his life for his village, be happy with the friends he had left, and never let himself love another person.

With that resolved, sleep finally found Kakashi Hatake.

..00..

Sakura had almost managed to forget the pervious hours and fall asleep. She had almost succeeded, until her mind flashed back to the very thing she was trying to forget.

_Damn him._

She didn't know how it happened, or why. All she knew was that it _did_ and her mind was still reeling over that fact.

One minute they had been arguing, then the next he had her pinned against the wall and was kissing her senseless.

_Oh, that man knew how to kiss._

She got that fluttering feeling in her stomach every time she thought about it.

All that the previous night did for her was cause more problems, not fix anything. She already guessed that he was afraid of how close he had gotten to her. Hell, it scared her. Being close to people meant opening yourself up to being hurt, to losing those people. But what kind of life would you have if you didn't? Yeah, you may not get hurt, but isn't being lonely practically the same thing? Isn't living your life never knowing what a true friend is, worse than the possibility of losing someone?

Maybe she was biased? She certainly wasn't afraid to let people in.

Was she?

She had close friends. She had her family. She wasn't afraid of the bonds she had made.

Was she?

If she was completely honest with herself she would have to admit that maybe fear kept her from trying to pursue a true relationship with Neji.

She didn't want to give someone her heart only for them to take it with them when they died. She had seen it happen with her sister-in-law five years ago when her brother passed away from a mission gone badly.

She tried not to think about it. It had been the first time someone close to her died. The first major loss she experienced.

Shaking her head, she sat up and fluffed the pillow under her head in an attempt to get more comfortable.

Ever since that day she had made her mind up that she would never fall for someone until they were both retired. Then she would let someone have her heart. Only then.

Losing her husband killed her sister-in-law. She wouldn't let something like that kill her too.

She just needed to stay away from Kakashi.

Obviously they felt something for each other. He had already proven to be capable of being someone important to her, and in a different way than Naruto, Ino, or Anko was.

If she let him back in her life he stood a chance of stealing her heart and that wasn't something she could let happen.

She had to avoid him, not that it should be a problem. She was pretty sure he would be avoiding her as well.

With that thought, sleep finally found Sakura Haruno.

..00..

Tsunade was not very happy to be pulled out of bed at an hour that couldn't really be classified as being night or morning. All she knew was that it better be good and very important.

Sighing and massaging her temples she sat behind her desk as a bunch of fidgety Jounin reported to her about their mission failure. Her attention only being captured when they said they had to pull out because ninja from Cloud that appeared to be their version of ANBU showed up.

"Say that again." She demanded.

"Before we could gather any information about the attacks three members of what appeared to be Could ANBU showed up. It seemed like they were threatening the local doctor; almost sounded like they were telling him that if he healed any of the injured from the attack he would be the one to suffer. Hokage-sama, I believe that Cloud is behind the attacks." Came the reply from the captain of the three mad squad of Jounin that she had sent a week ago to investigate and help the small village that had gone under attack at the edge of Fire's border.

"Alright, you are all dismissed. Get some sleep and I expect a full mission report by tomorrow afternoon."

With that everyone vacated the room save for Tsunade.

So it was true, Cloud was behind the attacks. She had her suspicions, of course, but this proved it. Why else would they come across Fire's borders to threaten the local doctor?

But _why. _Why attack a small village that had no ninja to speak of? Why threaten the doctor and not the leader of the village?

Sighing she once again rubbed her temples with her fingers.

She had to send another team in, one that would be capable of defending the village if it came to it and one that would be able to treat the injured since it seemed the doctor would not.

She knew the two she had to send in, but she was unsure how they would handle the situation of being thrown together. It would have to be undercover if they had any hopes of finding out what exactly was going on.

The only was a man and a woman could go under cover in that village was to pose as a married couple.

It was a very old fashioned place and men and women did not travel together unwed. No one would ever tell them anything or let them do anything if they went against the morals of the village.

She almost reconsidered sending them. Almost.

…00..

Kakashi felt like he had only been sleeping for a few minutes when a knock at his door woke him up.

When he answered it there stood a masked member of ANBU tell him that the Hokage requested his presence. He had dressed in a hurry and arrived that the Hokage tower in five minutes.

He was shocked to find Sakura open the door to Tsunade's office not three minutes after he had gotten there.

She seemed equally as shocked.

Of course, her presence wasn't all that shocked him. No. What shocked him even more was Tsunade's voice telling him – them – that they would be leaving on a mission together in one day's time.

"You'll have to pose as a married couple."

Yep, that was the icing on the cake.

He didn't know how he would make it through this.

..00..

So what do y'all think! Finally some inside clues to both Sakura and Kakashi's lives.

And yeah, I gave Sakura a dead brother. I felt it would give her a past and give her some angst.

Because there will be lots of angst to come from both side!

But the next chapter will have a lot of Kakashi and Sakura interaction as they embark on their mission together.

From here on out, I want to address some review that either have questions or have made good points and such. So at the end of each chapter I'll include some!

**Yle: I like it!I love the pair and I like the fact that Sakura is 26, slightly older than most other kakasaku fic.**

**I'll wait for the next update,thanks for sharing!**

I'm glad someone else likes an older Sakura in these fics. I feel that making her 18-20ish is just too young in most scenarios. I like giving her life experience and such so she and Kakashi have more in common. I feel like 26 is a good age. Of course, just my opinion =)

**Scarlettsky: Omgosh, its kinda sad, but I know it probably won't stay that way. I'm looking forward to what's to come. 6 years might seem long to some, but the older you get, the faster it flies.**

I agree. The older you get the faster time seems to fly. And no, it won't stay sad! I plan to give them plenty of happy moments!

**Jen: As much as I love this pair, I hope they don't go home together yet. It just seems too soon in the story. I would love to see Sakura ignore Kakashi for now and give him time to come to his senses. Other than that I'm really enjoying this. Update soon... but after you get some sleep.**

Totally agree. Sex too soon in a story can ruin it for me. Unless she has to end up pregnant or something, then I guess it's needed. Haha.

**harvestangel99: lol. Thank Kami for alcohol, its been helping people get through awkward moments for hundreds of years.**

No bigger truth as ever been said! Haha.

Thanks again to all the lovely reviews! I love reading what my readers have to say and answering your questions about the story!

3

Until next time!


	6. Chapter 6

Yay! Another chapter is here and ready to be read!

This one is a little darker than the others have been, but you'll understand why once you read it.

You'll also be getting a lot more insight into Kakashi's past!

Yay for that!

Also, I listened to Give Me Love by Ed Sheeran the entire time I was typing this, so I do believe everyone should give it a listen while you read this chapter. It def. sets the mood.

Of course, as always, I don't own anything save for the plot!

Enjoy!

..00..

Branches slashed his face, but he kept running.

Rain made the ground and tree limbs slippery but he gave it no pause.

He could hear the scream over and over. He had to get to her. He couldn't let it be too late.

It felt like no matter how fast he ran, no matter how much ground he covered, he just couldn't get to her.

He wanted to scream. He couldn't let this happen.

Another scream.

His blood ran cold as the scent of blood invaded his nose.

No, no, it couldn't be true. He couldn't be too late. He had to make it on time!

He pushed himself off the branches and willed himself faster. He was almost there.

He burst through the canopy of trees and landed on the ground.

He was there. He made it.

Elation was short lived. She was laying on the ground, not moving. Blood was pooling around her.

A laugh came from a man unseen.

It can't be true! She couldn't be dead! He couldn't lose her!

That laugh again.

He raced to her side, pulled her into his lap.

Begged her not to leave him.

But he was too late.

He was always too late.

_Rin was gone and she was never coming back._

With that thought Kakashi woke with tear pouring down his cheeks.

It had seemed so real. Like it had happened all over again, but it was just a dream.

Just a horrible, terrifying dream.

He has lost her that day. The last person he loved. He was alone then. She had left him, even though she promised him she wouldn't. Promised that she would keep herself and their baby safe.

_She'd promised!_

He had been so close to having the family he had always wanted. To being as normal as possible.

Just one more mission, she had said.

She had already accepted when she had found out that she was carrying his baby. He had begged her not to go, but she had insisted. Said that it was a simple mission to bring medical supplies to a neighboring village that had been attacked.

He should have known something bad was going to happen.

He had gone after her, a feeling of dread creeping into his mind. He would accompany her, keep her safe, and then they would come home and be a family. He would marry her and they would raise their child to know love and life, not death and sorrow as he had always known.

He had been so close to her when the scream reached his ears. He had known then that she had been ambushed. He had tried; he had tried so hard to get to her in time.

But in the end he had been too late.

She had been killed, left lying on the ground as if she wasn't even worthy of anything else.

He didn't know how long he had sat there, her body cradled in his. Darkness had fallen before his tears had dried and only then did he rise with her and made the long trek back to their home.

He had never told anyone that she had been pregnant. No one, except a few people, had even known that they were together.

After that day he had joined ANBU and swore to himself that he would never let himself get close to anyone ever again.

He had kept that promise to himself. He truly had. Until_ her._ Until he began working with her as a two man team.

She had made him break his promise.

And now he was traveling with her, had to spend time with her.

He looked over to his left and saw that she was still sleeping soundly, seeming to be oblivious to the turmoil Kakashi faced at this very moment.

He had tried to get Tsunade to send him with someone else. Tried with everything he had in him, but she had firmly said no. He was to travel with Sakura to the village at the border of Fire. He was to pose as her husband. He would have to share a bed with her. Share his whole life with her for the duration of the mission.

He truly didn't know if his sanity could take it.

They would reach the village by midday tomorrow. He would have to push back all his feelings and get the mission done as quickly as possible so he could go back to peacefully ignoring her.

He could go back to his pitiful existence.

..00..

Sakura had been sleeping pretty soundly until she heard the broken voice call out in the night.

She had woken with a start, looking around to see where and who the sound had some from.

To her surprise it had come from her right, from Kakashi.

She saw him sit up quickly and had noticed the tear pouring down his face.

She quickly shut her eyes and pretended to be asleep.

But sleep would not come to the pink haired girl.

It was beyond her what Kakashi had been dreaming about. She had no clue what could possibly drive Kakashi to tears.

She heard him get up from his bedroll some time later and walk off into the woods that surrounded their camp.

Opening her eyes she too sat up and got up from her bedroll, only she stayed at camp and went about preparing for the day ahead.

In about three hours they would reach the village and from then on out they would have to play the part of adoring married people. They would have to hold hands and act like they loved one another.

She had no idea how they were going to pull it off.

After their impromptu make out session the night before she had left his apartment without a word. She had no idea what had come over either of them.

But damn could the man kiss.

Shaking her head she tried to put those thoughts out of her mind and focus on the days ahead.

They were to pose as a recently married couple in search of a village they could make their home. Kakashi would pose as an ex solider for the Fire Country's civilian army and she would pose as a nurse from the same army. It would hopefully allow her to get close to the village doctor and allow Kakashi to hopefully gain information on the coming and goings that happened in the village.

Quickly Sakura changed from her normal attire to that of a civilian; soft pink Kimono and black obi.

She had just finished adjusting her hair when Kakashi walked back into their campsite. He only looked at her before grabbing his change of clothes and once again headed off to the woods to change in private.

It was going to be a long, long mission.

..00..

Yay! More insight into Kakashi's mind and past!

Yes, I know, it's sad. Losing a lover and baby all at the same time, but I promise from here on out things will look up for him! Of course, there will be a few bumps in the road, but that's life!

The next chapter will have them arriving at the village and we'll get to see how well they play at being a married couple!

Well, let me know what you think! Oh, and let me know how you think the song fit for this chapter! I'm thinking about making a playlist of sorts for this story and that song honestly could be the theme song! At least for now!

Until next time!

3


	7. Chapter 7

Ah! Two updates in one week! What has come over me! Must be all the wonderful reviews and follows and favorites you guys have been giving me! 3

Welp, because of all of that, here is another, longer, chapter!

Oh, and this chapter is a bit happier than the previous. =D

As always, I don't own anything save for my plot.

Enjoy!

..00..

They made it to the village earlier that she had originally thought, but for that she was extremely grateful.

Kakashi had said no more to her than absolutely necessary, and the silence had begun to mess with Sakura's head.

It was almost funny how everything about them changed as soon as they came within a mile of village; Kakashi walking closer to Sakura, even putting a hand on the small of her back to guide is.

It must be killing him, she thought sarcastically.

Thankfully, about ten minutes after they passed the gates (it was too easy to get in, according to Sakura) they found the lone Inn and were currently getting settled in.

Guess it was as good time as any to make further plans, she thought.

"Kakashi, we need to talk about what happened the other night."

Well, that certainly wasn't what she meant to say.

"What is there to talk about?" came his reply, not causing him to stop unpacking the small bag he had brought with him.

Well, that wasn't the answer she was looking for.

"If we're going to act as if we are married, you'll have to stop acting like it hurts you to be near me. Or better yet, stop acting like it makes you ill at the thought of touching me. I know I've never been married before, but I know this is not how couples act. I refuse for you inability to get over whatever it is that is causing you to be such an ass to jeopardize our mission." Dang, it felt good to get that out, she thought.

What made it better was she could see Kakashi visibly stiffen at her words.

At least she'd get some sort of response from him.

"I'm not acting like that Sakur-"

"Like hell you're not Kakashi! What is it about me that you hate? We used to be best friends; you use to trust me with your life. What happened? You decided it was better to kiss me senseless the other day rather than tell me and explain it to me. I already know it scared you, that our closeness scared you, but _why. _What are you so scared of?

"Mind your own business Sakura. You have no right to ask me that."

"Oh, I don't? I don't have a right to know why after three years you up and abandon me? Why you threw away everything we had been through. Why you no longer cared what your decision could do to me. Did you not, DO you not even care? No, of course you don't. The great Kakashi Hatake doesn't care about anyone but himself!"

With that Sakura put down the piece of clothing she had in her hand, grabbed the clothes she planned to change in to, and took off the bathroom attached to their room.

..00..

Kakashi didn't know how long he stared at the closed bathroom door.

He didn't know how long he held the same pair of pants in his hands before he realized that his mind had shut off at Sakura declaration.

How could he make her understand when he was not willing to let her in? Did he want to make her understand?

A small part in his head yelled yes, that he needed to save one of the remaining relationships he had. But another part told him to make her understand was to let her in, and to let her in was to risk losing her.

But hadn't he already lost her? Would it be more painful to lose her and know that they had a true friendship, or to watch her move on and live her life knowing he wasn't and never would be a part of it?

That was something Kakashi never thought about.

..00..

Sakura stayed in the bathroom for a good hour before reemerging. She noticed that Kakashi had left the room, probably to get something to eat for dinner. Briefly she wondered if he'd get something for her too or if she'd be left to fend for herself.

Deciding to be useful, she began to unpack the rest of her clothes and items that she had forgotten during her rant at Kakashi.

Truth be told, part of her felt bad about going off on him like she did, but the other part of her way glad. It was something that should have been said years ago; something that, even without Kakashi's response, she felt better. She had put everything out there, did all that she could. It was up to him now, and that gave Sakura a slight lift in her spirits.

Finally finished she looked around the room. It was small, with only one bed and one dresser. A door to the right of the room led to the bathroom and the door to the left led to the hallway of the Inn. The walls were painted an off white color that wasn't quite yet cream and the bedding was white with a light blue comforter. Thankfully the bed was a queen, so at least they wouldn't be on top of each other through the night. Maybe at one time it wouldn't have mattered, but now it certainly did.

If he could barely stand to be next to her, how was he going to handle sleeping next to her every night? And Kami only knows how long this mission could take.

Hopefully tomorrow she could go out and see where the doctor was located. If things went as planned, she could get a job with him. Not only would that give her the ability to get to know the local villagers, but it would also put her close to the doctor.

She had a sinking suspicion that he was at the heart of all the village's problems.

When she had walked through the area, she was surprised how well it seemed to be doing. Rebuilding had almost been finished, and she had yet to see any injured person.

_Of course, in a village this small damage would be minimal, since there would be less to destroy. _

But that didn't give a reason as to why there weren't any noticeably injured persons. If the doctor was refusing to treat them, how could they possibly recover?

Surely the reason for no injured was because they had all died of the wounds?

Shaking her head, she wonder if maybe getting a job at the clinic would do her any good.

How could you help treat if the doctor refused to help them?

Thankfully those thought were interrupted as Kakashi chose that time to come back into their room.

Oh, and it seemed like he had enough food for two.

And it smelled so good.

.00..

Kakashi had decided to go out for a walk while Sakura was still in the bathroom to clear his head. At first, it was odd to him to be in a place where there were no ninja. As he walked down the main street, it was mind easing to see such a simple life. A life that was so drastically different than the one that he lived.

Couples walked the street hand in hand, children ran around without a care, and families laughed as if they had forever.

It was actually a little disconcerting seeing as how they had been attacked recently, but after reading the mission briefing it seemed that attacked was a little too big of a word. Apparently the local guard had been ambushed just outside the village by rogue ninja that later turned out to be ninja from Cloud.

That would explain why the villagers were still as happy and as naive as ever.

Briefly, Kakashi wondered what it would be like to never know bloodshed. To never know death. To be unafraid of losing loved ones.

If he never feared losing her, what would be between Sakura and himself?

Of course, the ball was now in his court. He had to decide if he could let her in, or if he had to keep himself away from her.

Risk losing her to death, or lose her to fear?

Lose her for certain, or live with the risk?

He was abruptly brought out of his musing by a child of no more than eight as he bumped into Kakashi in an attempt to get away from his friend, whom was chasing him.

_To be so carefree._

Maybe it couldn't hurt to be friends with her. Not let her get to close, but not push her away entirely.

Best of both worlds.

With that decided he stopped by a local food shop that had an appetizing aroma coming from it to get food for himself and Sakura and then made his way back to the Inn they were staying at.

..00..

When Kakashi arrived back at the Inn with food, it seemed as if all that was said before disappeared. They ate in a comfortable silence that once again reminded Sakura of how they use to be.

It wasn't until Sakura finished her last bite and rose to throw the containers in the trash that Kakashi finally spoke.

"Sakura, I-uh, well, I'm sorry. I'm sorry for the past six years. I'm sorry for abandoning you. You're right; it was because I was scared. I know you want to know why I was scared, but that's something I can't talk about. So, please, let's start over. We can be friends."

Sakura stared at the man sitting on the bed with his head down. She could only guess what had gone through his brain to get him to this position, but whatever it was, she was glad.

It hadn't been until now, until the thought of having him back in her life, that she realized just how much she had missed him. Just how much she had wished she could have still turned to him when things when bad, like she use to.

Taking a deep breath and smiling softly, Sakura walked over to the bed and sat down facing Kakashi.

"You know that one simply admission and apology isn't going to make up for the past six years, right?"

Finally looking up and meeting her gaze Kakashi nodded his head. "I know it's only a start, but we have all the time in the world right now, don't we?"

Looking him in the eyes, searching for something she wasn't sure of, Sakura finally answered him.

"We do. But please, before anything else is said, tell me why. Why now? Why can you let me back in now?"

Looking away and staring off into space almost, Kakashi said, "Because I finally realized I can either risk losing you to death or lose you for sure to fear."

..00..

What did ya think!?

Don't worry, they're not just going to jump back to the way they were. There's been too much that has happened that needs to be told and still too much that needs to be said.

But they're on the right track!

Next chapter is going to have a lot of stuff about their mission, funny times with them pretending to be married, and who knows what else! (I mean, really, anyone know what else?)

Welp, lemme know what you think! Reviews make me want to get chapters out faster if I know people are enjoying what I've wrote!

Until then! 3


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